The Aquaponic Source and the team at AquaSprouts have come together to fulfill a common goal of creating new education opportunities for aquaponics in the classroom by giving away five AquaSprout Gardens and Introduction Curriculum Kits.

Aquaponics is the combination of aquaculture - growing fish and hydroponics - growing plants. These systems have been around for thousands of years, and have recently experienced a surge of popularity as more people seek to grow their own food in a sustainable way. All that is needed to get started with the AquaSprouts Garden is a 10-gallon aquarium, a few plants, and the fish of one’s choice. Aquaponics can be scaled from the tabletop all the way to community farms that feed many people around the world.

"We give students the power to take a standard classroom aquarium and transform it into a source of fresh herbs and vegetables," says Jack Ikard, founder of AquaSprouts. School gardens are wonderful, but also require constant weeding, watering, monitoring and can't be used during the winter in many states, nor accessible to students in the summer months when they are out of school. "Aquaponics allows students to explore nature year-round in the comfort of their classroom.”

Aquaponicsis not only ideal for growing fresh herbs and vegetables, but also for teaching and learning. Both educators and students can benefit from understanding how our natural environment works in a hands-on way. Educators in Science subjects such as Biology, Botany, Physics, Chemistry, Zoology and Ecology can teach their students the process and necessary requirements to cultivate plants and grow fish together. Additionally, other concepts of science can be developed, such as the role of bacteria in aquaponics, how the water cycle works and the process of photosynthesis, acceptable pH level of the water and functions of other components such as hydroxides, carbonates, and bicarbonates, as well as the existence and importance of other chemical elements like oxygen in the process.

"Along with the sciences, Aquaponics creates opportunity for other learning moments centered around critical topics such as nutrition, food security, sustainable agriculture, and feeding a growing world population", says Tawnya Sawyer co-owner of The Aquaponic Source. "Aquaponics is the ultimate green technology, we can't eat data or money or goods. We need people that know how to grow food, and what better place to start than the classroom."

The Aquaponic Source is now accepting entries from schools excited to incorporate aquaponics in their classroom for scientific education and hands-on learning. We will be giving away AquaSprouts Gardens and school curriculum kits to five lucky winners based on a voting system. Entry application closes April 18th. Enter now at http://www.theaquaponicsource.com/aquasprouts-giveaway/

About The Aquaponic Source
The Aquaponic Source was founded in 2009, to help empower home hobbyist, schools and gardeners to grow their own food through aquaponics by providing kits systems and components, education, fish food and much more. The team also runs a community scale aquaponic farm, and provides education and consulting services. Please visit us at http://www.theaquaponicsource.com

About AquaSprouts
AquaSprouts is a Texas-based business that designed and developed the AquaSprouts Garden. The company is focused on creating sustainable, cost effective, accessible aquaponics solutions that can be used around the world. AquaSprouts is also committed to educating communities and youth about aquaponics and the many benefits it offers people and the planet. To learn more about AquaSprouts, please visit http://AquaSprouts.com